Book Review of “Saussure au Futur”, by François Rastier

Right from the start, in the introduction of the book, the work of Saussure is presented in all its complexity. Saussure himself is revealed as harbouring serious doubts on the future of linguistics, which he will nevertheless examine in a manner that is both very ambitious and at the same time hesitant. Systematic doubt is the method developed by Saussure to get hold of linguistics by radically distinguishing himself from existing academic approaches and even from approaches (including Chomsky) which will be developed later. François Rastier demonstrates that Saussure was "poorly published" and invites the reader to a re-discovery of Saussure and his research. Throughout this book François Rastier is revealed as a dogged investigator who seeks justice for the work of Saussure. The tone of the writing is that of a detective novel, and the titles of the different parts fit this approach. The reader is invited to follow the investigator on the trail of Saussure and on the tracks of those who have sought more or less deliberately to hide these traces!